


Timestamp: Shooting Range

by YouCantKeepMeDown



Series: Mafia Archangels [14]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: (at targets), Gen, Shooting Guns, mention of transphobia, sibling-y feels, the term terf doesn't get used but they're talking about terfs, we don't approve of terfs in this house, worrying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-29
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-07-04 03:43:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15833058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YouCantKeepMeDown/pseuds/YouCantKeepMeDown
Summary: This timestamp is set before chapter 18 of Locked Away. Should be read after reading chapter 18, though.





	Timestamp: Shooting Range

**Author's Note:**

> Coplins bugged me to write a chapter about the other Archangels trying to help Raphael getting ready for her date. Turns out, Raphael doesn't need any help, and this got a bit more sad than anticipated.

The archangel mansion feels empty since Lucifer is gone. When Gabriel walks through the corridors, every step seems to echo more, even his breathing is way too loud. He hates it. It has to stop already.

It’s almost a relief when he hears the sound of gunshots coming from the shooting range in the cellar. Who’s practicing there this late? Curious, he changes direction and heads down the stairs.

Raphael is standing there, emptying the magazine of a handgun into a target with her usual precision, concentration on her face. Gabriel leans against the wall next to the door and waits for her to be done. You don’t approach Raphael, when she’s focused on something else. Lucifer has gotten his nose broken that way once. Gabriel likes his nose the way it is, thank you very much.

Finally, when the magazine is empty and Raphael turns to get a new one, Gabriel pushes away from the wall with a grin and a wave. She lowers the gun and takes the ear plugs out of her ears, tilting her head in question.

“Don’t you have a date tonight?” She isn’t planning on not going, is she? She and Michael really don’t know how to have any fun at all. Well, Michael is learning right now thanks to Dean, but Gabriel sometimes thinks Raphael really is a lost cause.

“It’s not an actual date,” Raphael says.

“I think your date referred to it as a date when suggesting it.”

That gets him a patented Raphael death glare. Gabriel makes a point of grinning even more. “My point is,” he says, “shouldn’t you be getting ready instead of putting holes in innocent shooting range targets?” For a moment he considers bringing up that she usually does shoot holes in things, when she’s nervous, but the wiser move is probably to just pretend he doesn’t know that and take the more complicated route to learning what’s bothering her.

“I still have two hours.” Raphael takes a new magazine and reloads the gun.

“And you’ve already decided what to wear and what to do with your hair or whatever? You know. Girl things.” He makes a vague hand movement that hopefully encompasses all things style and beauty. “I thought two hours is about the time something like that takes.”

“You seem to know a lot about girl things.” Raphael moves to put the ear plugs back in.

“Okay, okay,” Gabriel hurries to keep her attention on him. “Sorry! Bad stereotyping! Really sorry! But seriously, shouldn’t you be getting ready?”

With a sigh, Raphael lowers her gun. “I already know what to wear and what to do with my hair. It won’t take two hours.”

Oh, does she now? “You’re not going to make this all about business and wear a suit, are you?” It sounds like something his stupid stubborn sister would do.

Raphael scowls at him. “No, I’m not. I’m going to wear the dark red cocktail dress that Michael got me for my birthday.”

“That’s … actually a good idea, if you ask me.” So she is serious about it. He knew it!

“No one asked you.” But Raphael doesn’t make a move to go back to shooting this time. “What’s bothering you, Gabriel?” She asks after a while.

Gabriel blinks at her in surprise. Nothing is bothering him. He’s here to help. “I was going to ask you the same thing.” He stops. “Well, I wasn’t, because you’d have just gotten pissy with me and pretended everything is alright. But you usually go and perforate targets with bullets, when you’re worried about something, you know.”

That gets him a tight lipped smile. “And you usually go and annoy someone, when you’re worried about something.”

“I totally don’t!” Seriously, he never does that!

Raphael scoff. “Sure.”

After a moment, Gabriel deflates. Okay, yes, she may have a point at least when it comes to the fact that something is actually bothering him. “Well, I may have just been on my way to tell Lucifer about a funny thing I found, before I remembered that he’s in prison at the moment. And then I went to tell Sam, because he’s mostly bad at acting like he isn’t amused, and then I remembered he’s with Lucifer now.”

Raphael pats his shoulder. She stares down at the gun in her hand, then puts it in a holster at her side. “Tell me about your funny thing.” You can tell the amount of willpower it takes her to say that, because they both know she won’t find it funny. Gabriel appreciates it.

He shakes his head anyway. “I told you what’s bothering me. It’s your turn now.”

For a moment, she eyes him skeptically. Then she says: “She’s a lesbian.”

Gabriel blinks. “Yes? It would be bad, if she was straight, wouldn’t it be?”

Raphael rolls her eyes. “There’s lots of transphobia among lesbians.”

Oh, damn, Gabriel probably should’ve thought of that. “So you’re worried as soon as she finds out, she’ll lose all interest.”

Raphael shrugs. “Basically. I guess I’ll see tonight.”

At least Raphael is making an effort anyway. That’s the spirit. Gabriel pats his sister’s back. “If she’s an ass about it, she can still have an accident later.”

“I guess.” Raphael doesn’t look too happy about it. “Can I go back to perforating targets with bullets now?”

Well, time for him to go back to wandering the fucking empty halls of this fucking empty mansion then. Gabriel grins. “Sure.” Then he gets an idea. If Raphael is making an actual effort, she should go all the way. “Hey, would you want to take Lucifer’s mercedes for your not-actually-a-date?”

Raphael furrows her brows. “You know where he hid the keys?”

Now, that’s his time to shine. “No idea. But it’s a modern car, those are hackable.”

“Lucifer will be furious, if he finds out!”

“More reason to do it, right?”

Raphael huffs. “Okay. If you can hack it, I’ll take it for a ride.”

“You better believe I can.” With that Gabriel hurries off. On his way to the garage he barely hears the echo of his steps anymore.


End file.
